Mechanical Signals Members of the Society first produced the attached list of mechanical signals and other items of interest in 2012. It is based upon the Signuax Mecaniques - L'Inventaire 1996, published in the Voies Ferrées 98, November 1996. This listed some 270 locations most of which have now been replaced, but a few remain on lines that see little traffic. The list reflects the known position as at April 2013. Any amendments or observations would be gratefully received via the link at the bottom of this page.

Two useful english language sites that give a background to French signalling are:-

The best point-to-point on-line 'journey planner' timetable is the Deutsche Bahn HAFAS Europe-wide timetable database. It can be accessed in English or French, although the original German is fairly self-explanatory.

The SNCF journey planner is far from user-friendly. Drawbacks include time of day parameters that are too narrow, and the refusal of the system to accept a journey with more than two changes. It has a strong preference for SNCF TGV services, even if this involves a circuitous route.

Traditional timetables can be downloaded from the ‘Horaires & Trafic and Fiches Horaires’ section of individual TER sites. There is normally a drop down box in the ‘Ligne’ section showing the tables available in pdf format. These also normally show Inter-cites services operating over TER routes. Given SNCF’s practice of suspending train services for engineering work it is is prudent to also check the relevant ‘Travaux’ section. The link below is to the main TER site from which individual regions can be selected. If the required table is not available it might be found by selecting an individual station site (put SNCF and station name into google) as these also have links to relevant pdf tables.

For Paris RER services the SNCF Transilien site at the link below allows the PDF timetables for RER lines A - U to be downloaded. Stay on the French language site as selecting English will move you to information about travel cards (that may also be useful)

The link below shows a comprehensive set of monochrome maps showing the development and expansion of railways in France from 1850, although the resolution is not great. The site includes facsimiles of the Chaix map for 1921, when the French railway network was almost at its zenith, and of the semi-official French railways after the Co-ordination map.

The Bueker-Trainspotting site has some interesting material on European railways and border crossings, with links to excellent colour-coded maps of France, and separate maps of the Lille and Paris areas. It is both geographical and diagramatic, showing single versus double track and electrification status.